By Healthcare Facilities Today

San Francisco General Hospital's new quake-resistant addition — which is also seeking LEED Certification as a green, energy-efficient facility— is the subject of a video documentary from ElectricTV.net, according to an article on the FacilityCare website. 

In describing the new building’s design, Thom Thorsen of IBEW Local 6 says, “This building ... moves after an earthquake.”

How does an entire building move? According to a general contractor, an array of 115 “base isolators”— a collection of structural elements that enable a building to move separately from its foundation  — allow the entire building to move 2.5 feet in any direction during an earthquake, by employing a system of ball bearings, the article said.

The building’s final price tag is projected to be around $1 billion.

Read the article

Watch the video